|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO: OREGON v WISCONSINDecember 29, 2011Mike TaylorPASADENA, CALIFORNIA MIKE TAYLOR: Probably biggest thing is just if you're fatigued, being able to recognize what they are doing next on the next play and being ready for the next play and probably just not‑‑ trying not to be tired and like I said just focus in on the next play. Q. If they do start to get fatigued, I'm assuming it's both physical and mental, and maybe don't recognize things, they are out of their gap‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: One game I watched, USC obviously won the game and they were ahead but then Oregon came back, just at the end of the game, how it just looked like USC was kind of getting out of technique you and could kind of tell they were tired. Linebackers especially just taking huge steps and jumping forward. I think fatigue was probably a big thing in that and just how fast Oregon moves, especially the end of the game and you're tired, you're probably really feeling it. So yeah, probably that game. Q. That offense wears‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: Yeah, our offense wears on people, because we hit, we physically just beat you up I would say, and Oregon is more of a running, run, run, run and all of a sudden you can't feel your legs and you are gasping for air you and want more water and you are just drained mentally, physically. So, yeah, both offenses can wear you down. Q. Did you only look at games that‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: We looked a little bit at Arizona State last year, but most of the games this year, we watched Arizona State, LSU, USC, UCLA. We just tried to gain what they do, what stops them, what hurts the defense and what not to do and things like that. Q. A couple of the offensive line, they thought that LSU did a great job controlling the line of scrimmage and then their linebackers did a great job when they tackled‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: The biggest thing probably would be just tackling. The way they do their thing, there's going to be holes and you're going to have to get off blocks but it's going to be whether your arm tackling or a guy that the gap that's free and ready to tackle. The way you do that, is reading the play, reading your keys and being focused in and doing your job out there and no full steps as a linebacker and the time has come to make that tackle. Q. Michigan State, if you lost that game, the season would basically be a waste, you and said no, because you had not lost that game‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: The first Michigan State? Q. No, so this team has won ten games‑‑ curious, the stakes are different now, if you lose this game, for the season. MIKE TAYLOR: Obviously it's the last game and I've always been taught, win your last game and obviously the Michigan State game, wanted to win that one, if you lose that one, obviously we are not here and we are in a different Bowl and we know how much this Bowl means overall, and you know, to be in this game, again, and to go through the feeling last year of losing it and being so close, I think, you know, obviously we want to win this game, and I think if we don't win this game, obviously it's not the end of the world. But to me, I mean, I definitely don't want to lose. I hate losing. I probably hate losing more than I enjoy winning just because of the feeling of losing is just stuck in you for a whole year. Luckily we have been fortunate to get back to this game this year and hopefully we can turn it around this year. Q. Did you get a chance to see‑‑ inaudible. MIKE TAYLOR: He was my roommate last year in this Rose Bowl week and he just looked miserable coming out of shoulder surgery and being on pain medications it did not look fun at all. When I tore my ACL, I went through Bowl week wishing I could play in the Bowl game because that's kind of what you look forward to as a football player. But definitely just to see him have so much fun out there and having a great season like the way he is, he definitely deserves it. Q. When you did injure your knee like that, what was it like being out? Was it just mentally and physically, what was that like for you? MIKE TAYLOR: When you can't walk, you really appreciate to play football, to run and walk and to have fun and to not deal with something like that. I don't want to sound over dramatic or anything, but I mean, it definitely was not fun that first week, seeing your teammates play and have fun out there. But to be able to come back from that, I think I've gotten stronger and you know, learned how to deal with adversity and same with Chris. You really respect and know‑‑ you get a feel‑‑ what am I trying to say. You really start to realize, you know, like how much fun it is to be with your teammates and these four or five years, how much they mean to you and appreciate the time you have playing football here. Q. Once you got back, how was it just getting back into being a good football player. MIKE TAYLOR: Yeah, it was tough. You know, to have your doubt the about whether or not you'll be able to play‑‑ to play again, or play like you were before. But you just have to keep working at it and use practice, use games to get you healthier and to build on that and gain experience and just trust it more. Q. How did help you through that injury? MIKE TAYLOR: Well, I think shortly after, Chris was having shoulder surgery, and you know, we kind of both went through rehab together, just talked, watching film, just hanging out and just realizing how much football means to you and just being there together through that time and you just‑‑ you gain experience. You get a bond, and to be able to play football with him and to just trust each other; we have been in the program now for‑‑ this is his third year, my fourth year and we have both kind of gone through the same things and learned the defense together. Just, you know, we have grown up in this program. Q. You said that one day, you paid dues, in that way, what was it like to drop those two games on the last play? MIKE TAYLOR: It's really, you know, almost‑‑ you can't really describe it. I'm just going to say, you have one, I'll call it a freak play, but to do it again the next week against Ohio State, you really can't take in, you really can't believe in‑‑ and I really mean that, because I see Ohio State, to see that guy catch that ball, it's like, really, again, another week in a row? But I think in those two games, we learned from, and we just gained experience, gained knowledge from that. We just have to learn that we have got to start fast. We can't give up‑‑ we can't give up points, we can't give up plays and put ourselves in position for those kind of things that happen. Q. After the Michigan State game, did you practice batting down balls? MIKE TAYLOR: We actually did. We went over plays like that, just in case, again, and you know, Ohio State, it wasn't the same exact thing but it was similar. Q. Did you practice it even harder after Ohio State? MIKE TAYLOR: Yeah, we started practicing similar plays after every practice just in case those scenarios came up. Q. So you've been practicing batting down the ball since then? MIKE TAYLOR: Not since then, no. Q. What's the challenge with LaMichael James? MIKE TAYLOR: Obviously his speed and his lateral ability. Keeping him in front of you and keeping leverage on him and not letting him get in open spaces, get to the edge of the football field, and you know, the main thing would just be tackling, trusting your tackling, trying to keep your head up seeing him, not just diving at him, because he's going to be shifty and he's going to do some moves on you and you know, just got to almost get in front of him and be ready for whatever he's going to do and it's probably better to give up three or four yards than just try to knock‑‑ get a big hit and he's going to the house on a long touchdown run, so I think the main thing would just be, you know, proper tackling and you know, leveraging him. Q. He's got that real patient style where he's really quick; does that make it even tougher for you guys playing off the line, because you don't know whether you've got to commit or not? MIKE TAYLOR: Definitely. You might think, you know, you have him battled up and you might think‑‑ he sees you in a hole so he's going to try to find another hole and you try to counter that and go to the other hole, but he sees you go to that hole and sees you being so small, he can sneak through any hole, there's not a hole there. He can find a gap between anyone and just hit it and go. So, you know, we just have to be patient out there, match his patience and just be ready for anything. Q. What do you feel like‑‑ especially you on the outside, what do you feel like you need to do? MIKE TAYLOR: We just need to be focusing on every play, whether we are tired or whatnot, we just have to be ready each play, get it back to the huddle, get the ball, be ready and recognize their formation, recognize what they can do and just be ready for their next play and expect them to do fast pace, expect them‑‑ just expect everything from them and just be responsible up there. And the main thing is going to come down to tackling and doing your job as an individual and hopefully, you know, as a defense on the defensive side of the ball. Q. How did you actually get injured? MIKE TAYLOR: Tore my ACL, got hit and just went over. Just tore. Q. And that was against who? MIKE TAYLOR: That was two years ago against Iowa. Q. I was telling Chris what you had said about him last year and he shared some stories about you and he said that‑‑ I remember you were on crutches and he said you had guys get some food at the hotel or something and you had to go a quarter mile. MIKE TAYLOR: Yeah, in Orlando, that hotel, it seems like a mile, it was long. Eventually I lost the crutches and just put a brace on, but it was still quite a trek limping that far. But you know, obviously injuries can happen in football and you've got to accept that and I think the first thing I did when I tore my ACL, all right, that's what it is, that you can't take it back, move on and it's time to get better. This is a stage where it's time to get back up to one hundred and get back up to full health. Q. Last year, where you couldn't do it, you couldn't partake in any of the events either, was it hard to put on a happy face? MIKE TAYLOR: Well, I don't think it's quite a state‑‑ as far as pain and all that. Obviously just wish you could have been out there, because you've played most of the season. You've had, I would say, a little bit of success, and just being at your first year out there for me, just how much fun you can have out there and even if you screw up, you just are happy to be out there, just having fun with the guys. Being so young, I think that's what made it more fun being so young and being on the field. I don't think I ever got tired because I was having so much fun out there. But yeah, you know, for me, just like I said, you've got to accept it and just be happy that you've made it there and be happy for your teammates. When I got hurt, Chris came in and had a great season. It really made me happy to see that and obviously was like, well, what if I was healthy and all that. But you've kind of got to think positive, take it for what it is, and like I said, just take that as, all right, level zero or whatever and try to get back to that full health. Q. Will you go to that Lakers ‑ Knicks game? MIKE TAYLOR: Not sure. Q. Is there a celebrity you want to see? MIKE TAYLOR: Hmmm, certain celebrity‑‑ hmmm. I'm not really sure who goes to those games. Q. Jack Nicholson‑‑ I don't know, Spike Lee, it could be anybody. I think Chris said Bill Murray. MIKE TAYLOR: That would be a good one. I like comedians. I know Ben Stiller, Will Farrell, probably my two favorite comedians out there, so one of those two. Q. What would you ask them? MIKE TAYLOR: Probably just talk to them, laugh with them, maybe just say a few jokes, I don't know. First of all he's just a well‑rounded individual, and just he's always been positive, whether you get hurt or you lose, whatever. He's always been a positive man, just never thinking negative. Like I said just being a positive influence on everyone else and he's been a great captain, been a great leader this year. I think if we had more guys like Aaron, it probably would obviously be a lot better team. But he's just a great guy, like I said. Q. Just an infectious personality? MIKE TAYLOR: He just rubs off on you and you wish you could be more like him, you know what I mean, and just the way he represents himself and the university, it's kind of like, you just think of him as, you know, a special player, special guy. Q. The front seven has had a lot of success, especially defensive lines against Oregon; are you guys aware of that? Is that an emphasis to get a body, a hand on these ball carriers early? MIKE TAYLOR: I think it all starts with the front seven. That's where they snap the ball and hand it off to the running backs. If we can get gaps closed or smaller than what they are and just have guys where they are supposed to be, and the way we are doing things, if we can just all be where we are supposed to be and do what we are supposed to do and do our job, hopefully we'll have a guy to make the tackle and make the play. Just have guys doing their job and mainly making the tackles. Q. They do run LaMichael quite a bit, and they also have‑‑ a lot of these teams, you have to factor in both. MIKE TAYLOR: Even No.6, the wide receiver, he'll come on the running back and run some different plays and different formations, so they have got at least three guys that can just run and they can hurt you and they are fast. They have got speed and they have lateral ability. Q. To you, what's the most interesting thing that they are looking to find out about your defense? MIKE TAYLOR: Just being tough. You know, whether the guys are getting tired and just lining up, being ready for the next play, you know, how tough are we going to be, how are we going to match up against them and if they hurt us on the wrong play, how are we going to respond to that and how are we going to, you know, go throughout the whole game like that. Q. Is it hard playing nickel‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: To play nickel? Yeah, I mean, that's a heavy‑‑ that's a lot of duty coming in to play the game and to be expected to tackle like that and to be able to run around like that. Usually you come in to defend the pass, but we do that and they get more speed on the field to hopefully match their speed, so that's a big responsibility to come in and expect to tackle and then to even defend the pass to. Q. The speed‑‑ MIKE TAYLOR: Yeah, I mean, I really think it only really applies to the offensive line. I think our defense is probably smaller than most. Our linebackers are not that big, and our defensive line is not that big. You know, so speed versus strength and bigness, I mean, it's probably not exactly what it is. But obviously we are not the fastest and Oregon is a really fast team. So we just have to do our job and read our keys and it's going to be a tough task, especially for how much they run and how fast paced they run and we just have to be ready and that's going to be the main thing is just being ready the next play, next play, whether they get a big play or they stop them for a negative play, we just have to be ready because you never know what they are going to do next and whether or not they are going to have that fast‑paced tempo and just be ready and not let our guard down. Q. Inaudible. MIKE TAYLOR: I wouldn't say so. Obviously they have a great offense. They have won a lot of games this year. They have one of the better offenses in the league. They are highly rated. So it's going to be a challenge for us on defense but then again, we have won our share of games. We've had our big games, but I think, you know, any time you're the underdog, you just use that as motivation and they probably deserve‑‑ they have won a lot of games and just have to come out and be ready for them. Q. Inaudible. MIKE TAYLOR: That's what football season does, running all the games, there's nothing like the football season, you can get big and strong and working on conditioning but until you get pads on and running around and hitting people and going through injuries and nicks and being sore like that and doing that over and over throughout the season, not until then are really in your true football shape in terms of running and being used to all those football plays and just running around basically. Q. Inaudible. MIKE TAYLOR: Definitely, Oregon just likes to run a lot of plays and the last few weeks in practice, we have just been focusing on running play after play after play and even getting conditioning in after practice, so definitely. Q. A lot of changes coming to your program now? Do you worry about the future going into next year? MIKE TAYLOR: Not really. You know, not really think about that right now. I mean, ever since I've been here, we've had great coaches. You know, personally, Dave last year and the year before, he's been a great coach and Coach Huxtable he's done a great job with the linebackers and you can probably tell, just as far as footwork and reading keys and just being more responsible and having that responsibility on your shoulders more and him preaching it to you how good it is to be that responsible and take that on and you know, be accountable like that, I think he's done a tremendous job of doing that. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|